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Journalist Barbara Demick tells the story of life in North Korea through the experiences of 6 people who fled to South Korea. Demick does a terrific job of giving the reader an understanding of daily hardships for the average person. This is a difficult book to read because the lives portrayed are filled with such suffering: hunger, lack of medical care, desperation, fear. Unlike other accounts of societies undergoing difficulty, there is nothing here of the beauty of a heritage, no times of joy
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I give this book 5 stars, not because I loved it, but instead, because it's an important piece of non-fiction that should be mandatory reading for all. Journalist, Barbara Demick, weaves together a gripping, albeit depressing, account of six North Koreans who defected from their homeland. Each gives a first-hand account of what it was like to live in North Korea and why they left. Interestingly, each defector was a staunch advocate of the North Korean government. However, once the great famine o
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This is a very interesting book on how the reign of a few tyrants can completely destroy a countries people, economy and lifestyle. I think it might make it worse for those that remember what life was before the current regime or those who immigrated into this country, which seems crazy now but was apparently considered a good prospect at one time.
If you have grown up knowing nothing but this type of poverty I imagine it will be difficult to assimilate into a capitalist type society, which the ...more
If you have grown up knowing nothing but this type of poverty I imagine it will be difficult to assimilate into a capitalist type society, which the ...more
I knew little about Korea before reading this book and learned a great deal. History mixed in with the stories of 6 people from North Korea who defected give a good picture of what North Korea is/was like in an easy-to-read and definately not boring format.
Nov 23, 2012
Meghan
marked it as to-read-a-h
Apr 13, 2013
Lauren
marked it as to-read
May 23, 2013
Heather(Gibby)
marked it as to-read
Nov 28, 2016
Viv JM
marked it as to-read
Jan 13, 2017
S.L. Berry
marked it as to-read
